AHEPA Releases Euro Summit Agreement Statement

Galanis' comments in full can be read below.

AHEPA Statement on Euro Summit Agreement

WASHINGTON (July 13, 2015) -- John Galanis, supreme president, American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), a leading membership-based association for the nation's millions of American citizens of Greek heritage and Philhellenes, issued the following statement on developments with Greece's debt crisis:

"At an emergency Euro Summit held over the weekend, Greece and the Eurogroup reached an agreement early this morning on a set of reforms for Greece that, if enacted by the Greek parliament and the parliaments of other member nations, will lead to the commencement of negotiations on a third, three-year bailout program.

"Despite the Eurogroup's harsh demands on Greece, which Der Spiegel termed a 'deliberate humiliation of Greece,' and The Wall Street Journal called 'one of the most brutal diplomatic demarches in the history of the European Union,' we welcome the agreement that was achieved because it will keep Greece on a course to remain in the Eurozone.

"Make no mistake, we understand the agreement, if enacted, means that tough measures will need to be implemented. Challenges still lie ahead. In this regard, our thoughts continue to be with the Greek people, who have suffered greatly during this unyielding, relentless crisis. AHEPA pledges to remain sensitive to the needs of the Greek people and to continue with its humanitarian aid whenever possible.

"Finally, we appreciated the Obama Administration's engagement on the crisis demonstrated during the past week. We urge the administration to maintain its high-level contacts on this issue and to engage with Greece to ensure Greece returns to growth. After all, Greece is an indispensable and invaluable ally that, despite this unprecedented crisis, continues to demonstrate her true commitment to our mutual defense and national security concerns as only one of five NATO-member countries to meet the minimum two percent standard of GDP allocated to defense, at 2.4 percent. We also note that Greece, despite a lack of support from the European Union, continues to rescue and assist the influx of migrants off its shores due to instability in the Middle East. As Greek Americans, we are proud that Greece has stepped-up to address these dire needs and priorities where support from elsewhere is otherwise lacking."

(Source: http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs112/1102913833436/archive/1121635171266.html)